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President Obama Makes History by Appearing on 'Tonight Show'

LOS ANGELES -- President Barack Obama took to Jay Leno's stage and compared life in Washington to "American Idol," where '"everybody's got an opinion."

"Everybody is Simon Cowell," he said, referencing the sometimes acerbic judge on the hit Fox TV show. "Everybody's got an opinion. But that's part of what makes for a democracy. You know, it's contentious, people are hitting back."

But he said that he thinks the American people understand that it "took us a while to get into this mess" and it will take a while to get out. "They are going to give us some time," he said. The studio audience replied with huge cheers.

The appearance on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" was itself a sign of just much the culture has changed in America, where comedy and politics often mix. While late-night TV appearances are now standard operating procedure for presidential candidates, Mr. Obama was the first sitting president to appear on a late-night comedy show, NBC said.

"I hope my old social studies teacher is watching," Mr. Leno said, marking the moment. "The president of the United States is here. That's pretty cool."

For the president, it was an opportunity to pitch his priorities to an audience that may not closely follow the news, and to show his anger at the failings of Wall Street at a time when American fury peaked over bonuses paid to workers at
American International Group Inc.
He made a few jokes but mostly used his time to explain how the nation must move past the financial mess.

Asked whether someone should go to jail, the president said: "Here's the dirty little secret though. Most of the stuff that got us into trouble was perfectly legal. And that is a sign of how much we gotta change our laws."

He also took time to explain the financial mess to Mr. Leno, and in turn, to confused Americans wondering how one company can do so much damage to the economy.

The president explained how AIG transformed itself from "a regular old insurance company" into a risk-taking enterprise caught up in mortgage-backed securities to a company whose failure threatened the entire economic system.

And, as he did in a pair of town hall meetings in the Los Angeles area this week, the president urged people to move past their anger about AIG to fix the underlying failings of Wall Street.

"Who in their right mind, when your company is going bust, decides we're going to be paying a whole bunch of bonuses to people?" He said. "That, I think, speaks to a broader culture that existed on Wall Street, where I think people just had this general attitude of entitlement, where we must be the best and the brightest. We deserve $10 million or $15 million or $100 million dollar payouts. And the immediate bonuses that went to AIG are a problem. But the larger problem is that we've got to get back to an attitude where people know enough is enough."

Mr. Leno noted that AIG executives could sue if they didn't get their promised bonuses. The president replied that this was surely part of their calculation.

"We are going to do everything we can to see if we can get these bonuses back, but I think the most important thing we can do is to make sure that we put in a bunch of financial regulatory mechanisms to prevent companies like an AIG holding the rest of us hostage."

The president declined to give people financial advice about what to do with their own money, stepping back from a recent suggestion that now might be the time to buy stocks. But he did say that people should have "complete confidence in the banks. Their deposits are protected."

"They shouldn't be putting it in their mattresses," he said.

On lighter matters, Mr. Leno teased the president about his bad bowling, as exhibited during the Democratic primaries, and the president responded by comparing his performance to the Special Olympics for mentally challenged athletes.

"I imagine the bowling alley has been burned and closed down," Mr. Leno joked, referring to the White House facility.

"No, No! I've been practicing," the president said. "I bowled a 129."

Mr. Leno replied sarcastically that that was very good, and the president replied, "It was like Special Olympics or something." Later, the White House said that he didn't mean to make fun of the Special Olympics. (Read more about this and see a transcript of the exchange.)

Mr. Obama added that he is planning to install a basketball court in the White House to play a sport where he has more experience.

"Let me ask you, when people go, 'Mr. President, would you like to play?,' 'Yes I would,' do they throw the game?" Mr. Leno asked, to uproars of laughter.

Mr. Obama took on a serious look and paused. "I don't see why they would throw the game, except for all those Secret Service guys with guns around."

At the top of the show, during his monologue, Mr. Leno offered only gentle jabs at the president. He referred to a town hall meeting earlier in the day where Mr. Obama was introduced by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"Did you see President Obama standing next to Gov. Schwarzenegger?" he asked, saying the president looked like a cyborg. And he offered this: "A lot of people were surprised the president flew 3,000 miles (to California) -- but that happens to a lot of guys when their mother-in-law moves in with them."